“Xiaoxi, you’re not…,” Ye Xinglan cautiously asked, “You’re not secretly playing with toys while writing, are you?”
Ye Xinglan silently thought, ‘Wow, I really didn’t expect Xiaoxi to take this so far…’
She was still sitting right beside her, and Xiaoxi not only didn’t stop but was secretly playing right next to her—wasn’t this pure temptation?
“No! Xinglan, what nonsense are you talking about? Don’t jump to conclusions!”
Xiaoxi’s face flushed red as she immediately denied it. She let out a long breath and straightened her back.
Her typing speed suddenly picked up noticeably, as if she had entered a state of clear focus.
“Really not playing? But your body is shaking.”
“That’s because I’m a little cold!”
Ye Xinglan was skeptical but didn’t want to confront Xiaoxi directly about her lie.
Instead, she smiled playfully, took off one of her own jackets, and draped it over Xiaoxi, then resumed scrolling on her phone.
However, Xiaoxi’s fast typing didn’t last long. Not long after, her eyes glazed over again, biting her lip tightly as her typing slowed down once more.
Ye Xinglan noticed everything. She found it odd—Xiaoxi was usually so serious; when working, she focused entirely, and when playing, she played wholeheartedly.
Why did she have to multitask like this today?
It was obviously to tease her. Yes.
“Are you okay, Xiaoxi? Are you feeling unwell today?”
“Xinglan! Don’t suddenly touch me now…”
When Ye Xinglan wrapped her arms around Xiaoxi from behind, Xiaoxi’s brow was furrowed and her eyes closed, probably deep in thought about the plot.
At that crucial moment, Ye Xinglan’s sudden embrace made Xiaoxi’s body tremble uncontrollably. With a soft “pop,” something fell off her.
Both froze, silence engulfed the room. In the next instant, Xiaoxi’s quick reflexes grabbed the fallen item from the floor.
She was so fast that Ye Xinglan only barely caught a glimpse of a small, purple object.
Ye Xinglan cleared her throat twice, feeling awkward. She had only mischievously intended to tease Xiaoxi, but accidentally knocked off her “operation tool.”
And since Xiaoxi’s current clothes had no pockets, where exactly did that thing fall from? It was hard to guess.
Xiaoxi tightly shut her eyes, utterly embarrassed. Damn it, Muxingge! She really had to choose this kind of punishment, huh?
Muxingge insisted it wasn’t her fault. She wasn’t some pervert; she couldn’t even see Xiaoxi’s self-punishment moments.
Besides, wasn’t this punishment method Xiaoxi’s own idea?
Muxingge even thought she had been merciful enough, since Xiaoxi’s original words were “experience the plot I wrote while typing,” and Muxingge had simplified the condition to “playing with toys.” Yet Xiaoxi still had complaints?
Though Muxingge couldn’t see it and didn’t want to see it, she wasn’t worried Xiaoxi would back out.
After all, they had signed a Magic Contract. Xiaoxi, a D-rank Magical Girl, couldn’t just break the contract by force.
Actually, if Xiaoxi fully unleashed her power, she could resist the Magic Contract’s influence, but after struggling between exposing her identity or fulfilling the contract, Xiaoxi humiliatingly chose the latter… which led to this awkward situation now.
“I’m going to the bathroom!”
Before the awkward atmosphere could deepen, Xiaoxi stood up, her cheeks flushed, wanting to escape.
But she ignored her current physical state. Just as she took a step from her chair, her legs went weak, and her body swayed.
“Careful!”
Ye Xinglan reacted quickly and grabbed Xiaoxi, but with a “plop” both fell to the floor together.
Ye Xinglan’s face flushed too, as she clearly felt Xiaoxi trembling violently against her before relaxing completely.
Xiaoxi didn’t want this to happen either, but the problem was that her “Progress Bar” had almost been filled just moments ago when her operation tool accidentally dropped.
So she was stuck in a “limbo” state.
Then, when they fell, Ye Xinglan’s knee pressed against her, pushing her Progress Bar to full, so…
Simply put, Xiaoxi was fighting a Wild Monster, and just as the monster was down to a sliver of health, her weapon dropped.
Ye Xinglan swooped in and landed the finishing blow, stealing Xiaoxi’s kill and experience.
Of course, a monster you kill yourself and one someone else finishes aren’t the same, so Xiaoxi now felt limp and leaned weakly on Ye Xinglan—probably so frustrated by the kill steal she had no energy left.
Ye Xinglan noticed the oddness and slowly relaxed her knee, but seeing Xiaoxi’s flushed, embarrassed expression made her unable to resist teasing.
“Xiaoxi, I didn’t expect your gaming addiction to be this serious, secretly playing games while typing~”
“What addiction… I—I’m playing for the first time!”
Ye Xinglan smirked in disbelief. This wasn’t the first time she caught Xiaoxi red-handed. Didn’t she once find her playing games secretly under the covers?
She just hadn’t expected someone who looked so honest and cute to have such a big gaming itch, farming monsters every now and then.
Just like the typical excuse cheating guys give when caught: “It’s my first time, please forgive me.” Yeah, right.
But this time Xiaoxi was truly innocent… she really was playing for the first time! No one believed honesty anymore.
“You liar, your first time playing and you’re already dual-boxing, huh?”
“That’s because…”
Xiaoxi opened her mouth, ready to curse Muxingge, that bastard, but halfway through, the words stuck in her throat.
It was because of the condition Muxingge added in their contract forbidding her from revealing the truth!
Damn it, Ye Xinglan wasn’t an Outsider either, and the Magic Contract’s terms were really that strict?
“For what? To tempt me, right?”
Ye Xinglan tilted Xiaoxi’s chin up, caressing her cheek, a growing flame burning inside her. Of course, she wasn’t some unfeeling robot. Xiaoxi’s Progress Bar was full, but hers wasn’t yet!
If she felt nothing with Xiaoxi lying so provocatively on her, she might as well become a nun. If this isn’t temptation, what is?
“It’s not temptation, I’m just… just looking for inspiration, okay!”
After all, art comes from life. For someone writing light romance, seeking inspiration this way seemed… reasonable?
Ye Xinglan thought, ‘You should’ve just said you’re looking for inspiration. You always like writing tentacle monsters, right? If you wanted to find inspiration through experience, I could even grow a few tentacles to help.’
Xiaoxi struggled to get up from Ye Xinglan, but seeing her instinctively clench her thighs, Ye Xinglan couldn’t hold back any longer and pushed Xiaoxi down on the bed.
“I can help you look for inspiration~” Ye Xinglan whispered close to Xiaoxi’s ear. “Hey, let’s sleep together tonight, okay?”
“Of course not… Don’t go touching me down there!”
The last time they shared a bed, Ye Xinglan could control herself from getting too involved, but now the atmosphere was on the edge of something more, both feeling a mental blankness and going with the flow.
But just as Ye Xinglan reached to undress her, Xiaoxi, summoning the last bit of rationality, grabbed Ye Xinglan’s wrist.
“No, Xinglan… not yet.”
“Housekeeper Miss, didn’t you just say we don’t have to pretend to be a couple anymore? We’re just… ordinary friends now.”
Ye Xinglan froze, a sentence stuck in her throat. She knew that once spoken, the moment would naturally continue, but both stayed silent without saying it.
The atmosphere was already irreversibly charged, yet they consciously pulled back.
Xiaoxi closed her eyes, and for a moment, she wanted to say that sentence impulsively, but she restrained herself.
A complex wave of emotions welled inside—regret, loss, and yet a hint of relief.
That night, neither Xiaoxi nor Ye Xinglan could sleep.
…..
The next morning, after handling a bizarre robbery case and waiting for logistics to wrap up, Xiaoxi spaced out, staring into the distance.
She just happened to see Shandie call Xiaohongmao aside, then secretly pull something out.
“Uh… Shandie, what’s that?”
“A gift for you.” Shandie was brief.
Looking at the beautifully wrapped Gift Box in Shandie’s hands, Xiaohongmao was a bit stunned.
It was clearly carefully packaged, like something for a classmate’s twelfth birthday party—colorful and fancy.
Shandie had seriously thought about how to complete Black Rose’s task of befriending these people. The conclusion was… to give gifts.
The target of the gift had also been considered carefully. Building connections had to be done step by step.
Muxingge, the S-Rank Magical Girl, was too hard to deal with. According to Black Rose, Sirius seemed to be hiding something.
So Shandie’s first target for building rapport was naturally Xiaohongmao.
But if Black Rose saw Shandie’s approach, she’d probably laugh in anger. It was clear Shandie had no social experience.
Does real life work like a galgame, where giving gifts automatically raises favorability?
Still, Xiaohongmao was much better than her clueless older sister.
Though it felt strange, since it was a kind gesture, she couldn’t refuse.
“Really? Thank you!”
Just then, L Miss’s stern voice came through the public channel.
“Sirius, come to my office after morning duty. I have something to discuss.”
Xiaohongmao glanced toward Sirius. Minister L was always strict.
It seemed like Sirius was always getting scolded in L’s office?
Today, however, Xiaoxi was truly absent-minded.
After L Miss finished speaking, several seconds passed before she responded faintly, “Understood.”